ERAS – The residency application website for civilian residencies. See also “MODS.”

Fellowship – Specialization in a medical specialty after Residency, e.g. Pediatric Oncology is a specialization of Pediatrics. These last 1+ years.

Internship – First year of Residency. Used to be considered separate from Residency, but no longer.

M1, M2, etc. – First year of med school, second year, etc. There are four total.

MCAT – Medical College Admission Test

MCV – Medical College of Virginia. The original name of the medical school until it was subsumed by VCU. See also: VCU.

MODS – The residency application website for the military. See also “ERAS.”

Orgo – Organic Chemistry

Peds – (pronounced “pedes”) Pediatrics.

PGY-1, 2, 3, etc. – Post Graduate Year. Number of years of training after graduation from med school so far. Includes internship, residency, and fellowship, as applicable.

Pimp – Rapidfire questioning by the professor/attending until the student gets one wrong.

Residency – Formal apprenticeship in a specialty after graduating med school. These are 3+ years long. Can be followed by a Fellowship for further specialization.

Richmond – The capital city of Virginia, and the capital of the Confederate States of America from 1861 to 1865.

Richmond is a Hard Road to Travel – A song detailing the difficulties the Union had trying to get to Richmond during the Civil War. Also the title of this blog.

Step 1, Step 2, etc. – See “USMLE.”

USMLE – United States Medical Licensing Examination. There are three steps. Step 1 is taken after M2 and covers “basic sciences.” Step 2 is taken during M4 and covers clinical skills. Step 3 is taken after the first year of residency (“intern year”) and tests application of medical knowledge.

VCU – Virginia Commonwealth University. The official banner institution of the medical school. Used somewhat interchangeably with MCV on the blog. See also: MCV.